Intensive development efforts in communication technologies, as well as in other "high-technology" disciplines, is fueling a need for high performance semiconductor devices and circuits. For example, in the optical communications arena, the growth in dense wavelength division multiplexing is driving the development of complex opto-electronic circuits such as the electrooptic modulated laser ("EML"), which comprises, among elements, a laser, modulator and photodetector. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,548,607; 5,147,825; 5,543,353; 5,539,763, incorporated by reference herein.
The complexity of design that characterizes the EML, other optoelectronic circuits and devices, and, more generally, semiconductor circuitry, is reflected in the processes used to make them and circuit and device topography. With regard to processing, cost containment efforts for such complex devices have led to the development of "add-on" optical subassemblies and planar lightwave circuits that must be bonded to the "active" side of a complex device. As to topography, a complex device such as the EML may have both active and passive structures that extend beyond a base plane of the device, resulting in a varied topography.
By virtue of their "radical" topography, and the bonding operations to which they are exposed, such devices are subjected to pressure at critical areas, such as the active layers of an EML. Such pressure causes stresses that may directly result in device failure, or may cause damage that leads to reliability problems. As a result, process yields and device performance suffers. As such, a need exists for improved semiconductor circuitry, optoelectronic devices and the like that, while characterized by significant topographical variations, are markedly less susceptible to damage caused by the aforementioned bonding operations.